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F1 2023

Next race in a couple of weeks is Las Vegas, For some reason the various elements appear to be happening in the evening, local time.

These are the telly times in the UK:

Fri 17 Nov
FP1 - 04:30
FP2 - 08:00

Sat 18 Nov
FP3 - 04:30
Qual - 08:00

Sun 19 Nov
Race - 06:00

I think Las Vegas is UTC-8, which puts the 06:00 Sunday race in the UK at 22:00 on Saturday evening in Las Vegas. Hence the confusion.
 
Next race in a couple of weeks is Las Vegas, For some reason the various elements appear to be happening in the evening, local time.

These are the telly times in the UK:

Fri 17 Nov
FP1 - 04:30
FP2 - 08:00

Sat 18 Nov
FP3 - 04:30
Qual - 08:00

Sun 19 Nov
Race - 06:00

I think Las Vegas is UTC-8, which puts the 06:00 Sunday race in the UK at 22:00 on Saturday evening in Las Vegas. Hence the confusion.

It will look pretty amazing in the night tbf and I guess that is a fair compromise.

If you like getting up in the morning! :mad:
 

Steiner claims 'clear evidence' in Haas right of review appeal​

Guenther Steiner has claimed Haas has "clear evidence" which it hopes will be successful in its right of review appeal into the United States Grand Prix. The team has successfully lodged a RoR into the results of the Austin race, where track limits was a problem throughout, with the case based around breaches at Turn 6 by Alex Albon and Sergio Perez. The corner was not one monitored during the race, and with no suitable camera evidence proving Albon in particular breached the limits, no penalty was handed out, with Nico Hulkenberg finishing 11th for Haas.

As is its right, the team lodged a review appeal within 14 days of the race, the first part of which is set to take place on Wednesday 8th November, with Red Bull, Aston Martin and Williams all summoned to the virtual hearing. The first part of the hearing will determine whether Haas has supplied the 'relevant, new evidence' unavailable to the stewards at the time, with the actual reviewing of the incidents themselves depending on this threshold being met.

Steiner confident
"There are rules. If the stewards do not have the correct information, then of course they cannot intervene," Steiner told reporters. "We completely understand that. However, now we have the information and we will see what the FIA does once they have that information at their disposal. I completely understand that [the stewards] have not seen the images yet, but if that is the case, how can they make a decision with certainty? However, now we have clear evidence."

It is believed this is the on-board camera footage from the cars that was unavailable at the time, with a precedent for camera footage being used to deliver a penalty being set at the 2020 Austrian Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton was handed a three-place grid penalty after Red Bull became aware of video footage from the 360 degree camera on the Mercedes that showed Hamilton not slowing under a yellow flag in qualifying for when then-team-mate Valtteri Bottas went off in Q3.
 

Pundits reveal Perez future bombshell as paddock rumours continue​

Sky Sports pundit Martin Brundle has revealed insider rumours in the paddock, confidently stating that there is "no doubt" Sergio Perez will continue with Red Bull for the next Formula 1 season. Perez was unable to secure a podium finish alongside his Red Bull teammate, Max Verstappen, as he was narrowly beaten to the line by Fernando Alonso at the Brazilian Grand Prix. The Mexican driver's future has been a prominent topic of discussion in the paddock due to a series of unfortunate results. Speculation even arose that if he did not secure second place in the drivers' championship, he might be replaced. Perez is engaged in a close battle with Lewis Hamilton for P2 in the overall standings and now leads by a margin of 32 points.

However, Brundle has claimed that Perez will stay with Red Bull in the upcoming 2024 season, based on information he received from sources within the paddock. "I'll stand by what I've said in the last couple of races," Brundle said. "I believe Red Bull absolutely want to keep running Perez next year and will do everything to make that happen. There is a contract in place, and they don't want to change, for any number of reasons. That's what they're aiming at, at the moment. I have been categorically told – by people who know – that it's not about finishing second in the championship. He certainly needs to have solid races or where is he at, in his own head, going forwards? Right now, Perez has the Red Bull seat next year. No doubt about it."

Ricciardo pressure
Naomi Schiff responded to Brundle’s claims by questioning whether Red Bull can afford a driver who isn't consistently scoring points each weekend, especially as other teams are closing the performance gap to Red Bull. "It has to be said that, although Max has dominated the season, the race behind Red Bull has been solid," said Schiff. "Now we've got McLaren, Mercedes, Ferrari with drivers who are quite close together, in cars that are competitive. Can Red Bull afford to have a driver who isn't picking up the points, when next year might be a tighter competition?"

Mercedes currently hold second place in the constructors' championship, but Ferrari are hot on their coat tails, just 20 points behind them. Despite Red Bull securing the constructors' championship back in Suzuka, it is anticipated that the competition will be much closer next season. And with such close competition, Schiff has suggested that Daniel Ricciardo could be the key for Red Bull to maintain their dominance next season. "At least, if you look at the Red Bull camp, the sister team, the talent they've got in their roster, he's the most likely next candidate right now," Schiff added. "What he did in Mexico proves that Daniel Ricciardo is back, to an extent. The time he had at McLaren was quite miserable. We all, including himself, doubted. What happened to Daniel Ricciardo? Because he was always a great driver. Moments like that go to show that, when he's got the car, he can deliver. Red Bull will look at a result like that and think he's a definite candidate."
 
Bloody marvellous. I was following the GP as best I could via the lap by lap text updates from the BBC.

Just as we got to the penultimate lap they called me through to see an A&E GP!!

I gather Alonso kept 3rd...

The damn dye they've put in one eye is making everything appear like I'm wearing those 3D glasses now.

your eyeball on the mend chap :)
 

I expect Ferrari's support in Hamilton 2008 title legal action: Massa​

Felipe Massa says he expects and hopes for Ferrari to support his on-going legal action over the 2008 World Championship. Massa is currently pursuing avenues to try and overturn the result of the title he lost to Lewis Hamilton by one point after comments from then-F1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone suggested he knew the Singapore Grand Prix had been fixed by Renault during the season, but that he elected not to take any action. The Brazilian's legal team is awaiting documents from the FIA and Formula 1, with a final deadline for them to be handed over being extended to November 15th, with the 11-time Grand Prix winner not interested in any financial settlement. Massa's Ferrari team has thus far been quiet over the case, with Hamilton also not taking an interest, but Massa believes Ferrari will lend its support to his case as it also lost a championship - which would be its 16th Drivers' crown.

Massa expects Ferrari support
"I am still expecting to be together and have support, because at the end, we lost the championship together," Massa told reporters on the 15th anniversary of the race in Brazil. "I love Ferrari, it is part of my heart and I am definitely a big Ferrari fan and will be all my life for everything [that happened] during my time with the team, with the fans, the opportunities and the dreams that I had. So I definitely expect it to be on my side, because we lost the championship together through the manipulation that happened. Anytime that you hear about Toto Wolff talking about 2021, he is the most supportive person, so with that, I cannot really believe that Ferrari won't be on that situation with me. For the moment, they are quiet, but I really believe they will be on my side, and I really hope that is the case because that is the correct thing for what happened to us. What happened to me, happened to Ferrari as well."

Support in Brazil
In 2008, Massa lost out on the chance to become the fourth Brazilian to claim the title after Emerson Fittipaldi, Nelson Piquet and Ayrton Senna - whose last crown came in 1991. When asked how his case has been received by the Brazilian public, Massa detailed how he is often stopped in the street by people offering their support. "The reaction is very, very supportive," he says. "Everywhere I go, in the airport, the supermarket, the restaurant, people stop me to say that they are on my side and that I need to fight because what happened to you is not part of the sport and that I am the champion. I have amazing support from different people in the country, but not even just Brazil, sometimes in the United States, I have support and Europe as well. Many people in the racing world, you can sometimes see they are a bit afraid to express their support for me, but there are many who back me, even inside motorsport, so I am not doing it alone. I'm doing it for my country because Brazil lost out by not being recognised as a champion. That could have been amazing to help motorsport grow - and we don't have a Brazilian driver in Formula 1 at the moment. It could have been different, looking at what Senna did for other Brazilians. I am not comparing myself with Senna, but we know how important that championship would have been for the country."
 

McLaren reports £9m operating loss despite sporting upturn​

McLaren Racing Limited has reported an overall £9 million loss for its fiscal year 2022 in its most recent reported accounts - pinned partly on the cost of paying off Daniel Ricciardo. The team's finances state a revenue of £327.892 million in 2022, an increase of more than £115 million over the amount at the same point in the previous year. As well as F1, the turnover includes IndyCar, Formula E and Extreme E which all fall under the McLaren Racing Limited umbrella. The team's annual report says the improvement is “primarily as a result of increased sponsors in the year, a return to pre-COVID hospitality, and inclusion of revenue from the IndyCar operations.”

Last year was the first year in which revenue from IndyCar was included in the overall company accounts. McLaren acquired a 75 per cent stake in Schmidt Peterson Motorsports and further increased its stake in August 2021. IndyCar contributed £16.35 million to the company's revenue, but McLaren overall still posted an operating loss of £9.08 million for 2022 compared to a loss of £32.65 million the previous year. The report blames “pressures across all costs as well as a one-off provision for driver costs and increased costs related to a return to pre-COVID hospitality levels" for the loss.

The one-off driver costs are a reference to the pay-off made to Daniel Ricciardo to terminate his contract a year early after a dismal time for the Aussie last season, allowing McLaren to hire his compatriot Oscar Piastri instead. In sporting terms the decision has paid off, with Piastri contributing to the team's F1 renaissance with two podiums in his rookie season on top of a victory in the Qatar sprint race. But the cost remains a drag on the overall accounts with the team paying the price for deciding to split with Ricciardo at the end of 2022. Sources at the time told Australian motorsports website Speedcafe that the pay-out amounted to somewhere between £14.7 and £17 million. On the plus side, Piastri's remuneration is much, much lower than Ricciardo's had been.

Without that, the F1 operations on their own are likely a profitable operation despite its investments in an all-new wind tunnel and simulator that have come online during 2023 as well as high profile new hires for the restructured technical team including David Sanchez, Rob Marshall and Peter Prodromou after the exit of James Key. Last year McLaren ended the season fifth in the constructors’ championship with 159 points. This year it is fourth with 282 points, 21 points clear of Aston Martin with two races remaining. That's despite a terrible start to the season in which Piastri and Lando Norris didn't score points in five of the first eight races. It was only with new upgrades arriving in Austria that things began to turn dramatically around.

The result is significant in terms of McLaren's future earnings. Fourth would net them an 11.3 per cent share in prize money which could see them receive more than a hundred million dollars on top of a $30 million heritage payment. All things considered, it's likely that the top brass in McLaren will see the decision to drop Ricciardo as an overall plus in money terms every bit as much as on-track results. It's also worked out well for Ricciardo himself who has now secured a permanent seat at AlphaTauri. Despite missing several races due to a hand injury, he stormed into the points in Mexico and is rumoured to be in the running to rejoin his old team Red Bull if Sergio Perez fails to re-find his form in 2024.
 

General Motors Refuses To Enter Formula 1 Without Andretti​

General Motors wants in on the Formula 1 circus, but it won't back down on one thing: its partnership with Andretti Autosport. The Andretti-Cadillac deal has been up in the air since it was announced that the FIA gave Andretti Autosport permission to join the Formula 1 grid. At the time of the announcement, GM and Cadillac were not mentioned, which may have been due to the UAW strike and its impact on GM's ability to commit money to projects lie F1. But it has now been confirmed that GM is still very much involved.

In an interview with Associated Press (AP), GM said it's still committed to the partnership and has no intentions of getting involved with another team. This comes shortly after the Formula One group reportedly asked Caddy not to partner with Andretti. "GM is committed to partnering with Andretti to race in F1," said GM President Mark Reuss. "The collaboration between Andretti-Cadillac brings together two unique entities built for racing, both with long pedigrees of success." Andretti and Cadillac still have a long battle ahead, however. Andretti told AP that F1 president Stefano Domenicali is not answering his calls or responding to messages. That may be why GM is sending a group of executives to the Las Vegas Grand Prix next weekend. Andretti-Cadillac needs to start a dialog with the Formula One Group and Liberty Media. This entity is made up of the promoters and license holders (Liberty) and the various existing teams. The teams have been vocal about not wanting an 11th team on the grid. Only McLaren and Alpine have welcomed the challenge, but the rest don't want to share the winnings at the end of the season. We find this attitude exceedingly odd, considering the sport is making more money than ever before, and 11 teams on the grid is nothing new. There were 11 teams on the grid for the 2016 season, for example.

Despite the pushback, Andretti has already started car development and wants to join the grid by 2025. Entering the 2026 season would have made more sense given the substantial regulations changes, but who are we to judge? You certainly can't accuse Andretti of half-assing this F1 entry. While ticket sales for the Las Vegas Grand Prix are dwindling, the sport is getting more attention in America than ever. The 2026 regulations also make it much easier and cheaper for a manufacturer to join the sport. We've seen this before with Audi taking over Sauber and Ford and Red Bull getting into bed together. In short, it's a fantastic opportunity to make a brand and its products visible globally. And since the 2026 power units will be 50% ICE and 50% electric, Cadillac can punt cars like the Lyriq and old-school supercharged V8-powered sedans like the CT5-V Blackwing. So far, the Formula One group has only released one statement. "We note the FIA's conclusions in relation to the first and second phases of their process and will now conduct our own assessment of the merits of the remaining application," the group said.
 

General Motors registers as seventh F1 power unit supplier​

General Motors has announced it has formally registered with the FIA as a Formula 1 power unit manufacturer from the 2028 season. The American brand has partnered with the Andretti Global entry bid, with commercial discussions the final hurdle before Andretti Cadillac Racing can join the grid as an 11th team. There has been stiff opposition to the entry from F1's incumbent teams over the value the bid can bring to the sport, which means this announcement marks a large stride in Andretti and GM's push to overcome the pushbacks. It means GM will join Red Bull-Ford, Ferrari, Honda, Mercedes, Alpine-Renault and Audi as power unit suppliers.

Deep engineering and racing expertise
“We are thrilled that our new Andretti Cadillac F1 entry will be powered by a GM power unit,” said GM President Mark Reuss. “With our deep engineering and racing expertise, we’re confident we’ll develop a successful power unit for the series, and position Andretti Cadillac as a true works team. We will run with the very best, at the highest levels, with passion and integrity that will help elevate the sport for race fans around the world.”
 

'I Hope It Bankrupts Them': Las Vegas Residents Enraged Ahead Of Formula 1 Grand Prix​

Listen to the powers that be in Formula 1, and you’ll likely believe that the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix will be a smashing success. It’s an unprecedented event, the series says, one that will transform the Las Vegas Strip into a high-speed race track for just four days in November. It’s going to be a riotous success, they’ve said, and it’s going to set the tone for all racing events going forward. Speak to people who have visited, lived in, or worked at the Nevada oasis any time over the last year, however, and you’ll hear a much different story.

Jalopnik spoke in depth to 15 different people connected to Las Vegas in some way. Several were longtime residents who have made a career out of resort work. Others were more recent transplants shocked by the sudden upheaval of the city. Still others popped into town for a work trip, or had arrived in hopes of a relaxing vacation that turned into anything but. “Life as I knew it ended when that construction started,” local author Lisa Lindell told Jalopnik. “The frustration, inconvenience and blatant disdain for residents living in Las Vegas is evident by the lack of information and coordination with everyone except the promoters of this exhibition,” a resident named Celeste, a Vegas local, said. Other conversations with resort workers confirmed that many properties still hadn’t initiated a plan of action for employees to arrive at work during race weekend, only asking them to factor in a three-hour commute time; those conversations took place 10 days before the first on-track practice session for F1 cars. Drake Donovan of Car Show Life has been attending the annual SEMA show in Las Vegas for years now, but when he stepped off his plane for the 2023 show, “Las Vegas felt different than it did even a year ago,” he told Jalopnik. When he arrived, it was to a city full of blocked sightlines, closed roads, and sidewalk construction. However, he found that once he got down to work, it was easier to turn his attention away from track preparation and find himself only mildly bothered.

“The Las Vegas Strip is one of those places in America that doesn’t just belong to the locals,” Donovan said. “It’s so well known to so many outsiders that we all feel a sense of ownership of it, but I hope there’s a benefit the locals can gain from all the inconvenience they’ve endured.” However, the problems have felt more accute for the visitors whose trip to Las Vegas hinges on enjoying the properties laid out along the Strip. When David Foxx reached out to Jalopnik, he was on his 10th day of a 19-day vacation, and he blamed F1 construction for “ruin[ing] what has always been a fantastic experience. “Everything you read about traffic being a nightmare couldn’t be more true. Numerous lane restrictions on the Strip make it untravelable. The best pedestrian bridge in town is covered. My last night in Vegas, I always take a picture in front of the Bellagio Fountains, but now they are blocked by bleachers for the upcoming race.”

My own family took a brief weekend trip to Las Vegas to see REO Speedwagon in concert; they’ve been regular visitors to the city for conferences and vacations over the years and have watched the city transform into race mode. When I asked how this trip compared to others, they reported long waits for cabs, disgruntled workers, and long walks. “Traffic is a nightmare,” my stepfather told me. “They’re diverting so many streets for Formula 1, and it’s so irritating. We’ve been putting in over 17,000 steps a day trying to walk from place to place.” My mom told me about her walk from the Vdara to the Venetian for the concert: “It was such a mess. Parts of the sidewalk were closed, and everyone was crammed onto the sidewalk on one side of the Strip. It took forever to get there.”

“Our cab driver yesterday was complaining that they paid a bunch of money to fix the road on the Strip so that it’s super smooth, but the surrounding roads are complete garbage,” she continued. “He said the city can afford to fix the streets for people to use it for one weekend, but not for the people who pay taxes.” The following day, they tried to head to the newly built Sphere to watch a show and found that the cab companies won’t head out that way due to road closures. “We took a cab from the Bellagio to the Venetian, then walked the rest of the way,” my mom said. “There was no signage, and it was impossible to find the entrance. It took us over an hour to get there.”

But one of their most telling observations came from their Lyft driver. As he drove them from the airport, he told them that “everyone hates the F1 race. He picked up a woman leaving work at the Sphere last night. She paid two-hours’ wages to get home because the bus would have taken almost five hours with all the rerouting and traffic.” That Lyft driver won’t do pick up or drop off on the Strip during race week. If inconvenience has been the name of the game for tourists, things have only been worse for the actual residents and workers that keep Las Vegas running — but not everyone from Las Vegas is convinced that the Grand Prix is worthy of such frustration. A resident (who asked to remain anonymous due to what he felt could be a controversial opinion) warned me, “Before you blame a single event for all the problems in Las Vegas, buy a plane ticket, rent a car and see for yourself.

“A handful of vocal people want to blame F1 for the terrible condition of our local streets. F1 is spending $90 million to repave a huge part of Las Vegas Boulevard that hasn’t been repaved for more than 20 years. [The series] will use this pavement for three days. The rest of the year, the county benefits.” The resident went on to note that the bulk of traffic concerns actually comes from something called “Dropicana.” “NDOT dropped one half of the bridge that sends Tropicana Avenue over the I-15 near Las Vegas Boulevard,” this resident told me. “Eight lanes of traffic reduced to two and pumped through the worst execution of a ‘double diamond’ you’ll ever find. It’s being done to benefit the Stadium and the NFL, because we’re hosting the Super Bowl. It greatly compromises traffic, but it has nothing to do with F1.
 
Continued:


“If F1 has done anything wrong here in Las Vegas, it was trusting the crooked politicos that handle things.”

The bulk of people I spoke to, though, felt the situation has been mishandled from the beginning. Celeste told Jalopnik that in her line of work, “when a new program or product got rammed down our throats, the line was ‘looks like somebody’s brother-in-law just got a new contract.’ That feels like it applies here.”

In late June, she told Jalopnik, it took her 80 minutes to drive four miles to transport her niece to a convention at Mandalay Bay — and the traffic has only gotten worse since then.

To illustrate the “narrow scope of planning,” she mentioned that, 10 days out from the event, there was no plan regarding “getting workers into and out of the Strip during race week and towards purveyors bringing goods into the businesses.”

“I hear nothing but complaints from other resort corridor employees. They don’t even want to work [F1] weekend,” said local author Lisa Lindell, who deals poker on the Strip. “One employer is offering prizes [for workers], with the top prize being a BMW. Workers only get one entry for every hour they work that weekend. Why not just pay more for those shifts?”

Many workers have been wondering the same thing — and that’s why tens of thousands of Culinary Workers Union members were preparing to strike in the buildup to the Grand Prix. Workers negotiated for a significant pay increase ahead of the race — a weekend that is expected to be deeply hectic in terms of both travel to work as well as the number of people being served.

A front-of-the-house hotel worker at a prestigious Las Vegas resort who asked to remain anonymous told Jalopnik that they are deeply familiar with both the automotive and motorsport worlds and therefore has no issue with F1 as a concept. However, in bringing up the potential strike, he noted, “When opening negotiations were happening, the hotel wanted to screw us. I’m sure it wasn’t just mine, either. [The hotel] weaponized the premise that our tip workers can ‘make a lot,’ but the tip workers who have been in the industry for a long time will tell you that guests spend more than ever during their stays now but tip a lot less than they ever have.”

Similar to Lisa, this worker noted that their hotel was also offering employees “the casino equivalent of a pizza party for record sales. Every hotel is trying to hype up its workers as if we’re all winning with F1 coming here. We are not. They are winning. They make all the money. They have no qualms about steamrolling their own workers and citizens of Las Vegas to make an extra buck.”

Another unionized worker in Las Vegas, Evan, told Jalopnik that the “prep” workers have received from their employers regarding the event “runs along the lines of, ‘good luck, leave home earlier, park somewhere else, and take a bus or monorail. Don’t be late. It’s not our problem.’”

According to Evan, Formula 1 has “failed to understand everything about Las Vegas and the Strip. It just sees streets on a map, hotel rooms to be rented, and dollars to be made. Las Vegas may be different from every other city, but in many ways it is still like any other city. People live here, work here, raise kids here, and live their lives. F1 simply doesn’t care.

“For every one fat cat Formula 1 fan, there are hundreds of ordinary tourists that are avoiding visiting Las Vegas owing to elevated costs and the general mayhem the sport is bringing to the city. Convention organizers are seeing the struggles their attendees have had, and if F1 is back next year, they will move their shows to another city.”

“The casinos run this town,” another anonymous resident told me. “Liberty Media is used to bilking sponsors, municipalities, and remote race tracks. They are not accustomed to dealing with very high-powered corporations who are in the business of doing the bilking, not being bilked.

“If the casinos don’t see a massive recurring profit that offsets the pain from construction and teardown, then this race will be dead. No one gives a crap about the sport. No one.”

As the race approaches and local voices continue to go unheard, the frustration of inconvenience for many residents has turned to rage. As resident Celeste noted, “Someone here is making a lot of money off of this event, and it is not the residents of Clark County. We will have our pockets picked, paying taxes for the bill.”

“I’ll leave you with this,” the front-of-the-house hotel worker told me. “I often hear the sentiment, joking or not, that folks wish the mob still ran Las Vegas instead of these vultures and leeches.”

“I moved here from Houston, and the traffic reminded me of Hurricane Rita evacuation traffic,” Lisa Lindell said. “I’ve seen cars in traffic recently that had ‘FUCK F1' emblazoned on the rear window.”

Another resident who wished to remain anonymous added, “The arrogance and audacity of Formula 1 ‘needing’ to run its races in densely-populated cities strikes me as borderline sociopathic.
 

Hamilton throws in the towel: 'This Mercedes car can't win a race'​

Lewis Hamilton has conceded that the W14 might not win a race during the 2023 Formula 1 season, after a difficult outing in Brazil. The seven-time World Champion was optimistic they had found performance following the United States and Mexico Grands Prix, after the team fitted their last big updates of the season. But the race in São Paulo confirmed Mercedes is still suffering from problems with the W14, with Team Principal Toto Wolff branding it their worst outing in 13 years. Hamilton also did not hold back after the race, claiming that Red Bull would continue to dominate until the 2026 rule changes.

Hamilton: It's been a killer season
When asked if they have figured out their problems from Brazil, Hamilton replied "We 100% know what went wrong in Brazil. Ultimately we didn't do a good job, but we took away a lot of learnings from it in terms of where we need to go and develop. Through failure there is always things you can learn from those experiences. Coming to Las Vegas we have a better approach, but we still don't know how the car is going to be here. It's still not a championship winning car, and I don't even think it's a race-winning car still."

There are fears that Mercedes' poor run of form might continue into 2024, as the team struggles to turn its current car philosophy into a race-winning package. Hamilton is making sure that he gives the team space to understand where it needs to improve, to get back to the championship-winning juggernaut it was before the 2022 season. "We've had so much work done throughout the year already. I'm on a group team chat with different departments and I will always be checking in," said Hamilton. "But I have to leave the guys to do what they do best. I'm always going to be wondering what they're doing, but you've just got to give them time. It's small steps each week, and on top of that I've got to get my head in the right place. I've got to get fit, prepare for the next season, and spend some time with my family - it's been a killer season."
 

2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix weekend weather forecast​

THURSDAY NOVEMBER 17 – FP1 AND FP2
Conditions: Mostly a sunny day and starry evening. FP1: 13°C // FP2: 11°C
Maximum temperature expected: 23 Celsius
Minimum temperature expected: 11 Celsius
Chance of rain: <20%

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18 – FP3 AND QUALIFYING
Conditions: Partly cloudy at first before becoming cloudier in the evening with the chance of showers not ruled out. FP3: 15°C // Q: 12°C
Maximum temperature expected: 21 Celsius
Minimum temperature expected: 11 Celsius
Chance of rain: 20%

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 19 – RACE WEATHER
Conditions: Partly cloudy with a moderate chance of rain at the end of the day. Chance of the rain will decrease closer to the race. RACE: 13°C
Maximum temperature expected: 21 Celsius
Minimum temperature expected: 11 Celsius
Chance of rain: 40%
 
Well, after all the hype...

The aerial views show a few buildings in coloured lights. There's the customary shiny Ferris wheel on the horizon.

The pitlane and cars look the same.

The main Las Vegas Pizzazz appears to be a gigantic, illuminated, pulsating testicle, which the cars circumnavigate, the main purpose of which is to thrust more advertising into my degenerating maculae.

Ah, ten minutes - red flag. Sky's rather downbeat B-team commentariat goes to an ad break.

I'm so glad I got up for this. Mustn't grumble, etc.

:p
 
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